Lesson 2 Page 2 (Two Types of Magnets)
Completion requirements
Two Types of Magnets
Permanent magnets are made of certain metals that, once magnetized, keep producing a magnetic field for a long time.
An electromagnet is a coil of wire that produces a magnetic field when electricity flows through it.
Cool Uses of Permanent Magnets
How did this little girl make plastic letters stick to her whiteboard? The trick is to use permanent magnets. The plastic letters have small pieces of permanent magnets in them. Magnets are attracted to iron. The whiteboard has a backing of steel (which has iron in it), so the magnets in the plastic letters are attracted to it.
The closer you get to a permanent magnet with iron or another magnet, the stronger the force you will feel. That is because the invisible magnetic field gets stronger the closer you get to a magnet.